Talks with Sri Ramana Maharshi Complete ... - BrahminVoice.org

Talks with Sri Ramana Maharshi
20th December, 1938
Talk 597.
A Swiss lady, Mrs. J. C. S. Hick-Riddingh, asked: “Does Self-
Realisation imply occult powers also?”
M.: The Self is the most intimate and eternal Being whereas the siddhis are
foreign. The one requires effort to acquire and the other does not.
The powers are sought by the mind which must be kept alert
whereas the Self is realised when the mind is destroyed. The
powers manifest only when there is the ego. The ego makes
you aware of others and in its absence there are no others to be
seen. The Self is beyond the ego and is realised after the ego is
eliminated. The elimination of the ego makes one unaware of
others. How can the question of others arise and where is the use
of occult powers for a Self-Realised Being?
Self-Realisation may be accompanied by occult powers or it may
not be. If the person had sought such powers before Realisation,
he may get the powers after Realisation. There are others who had
not sought such powers and had attempted only Self-Realisation.
They do not manifest such powers.
These powers may also be sought and gained even after Self-
Realisation. But then they are used for a definite purpose, i.e. the
benefit of others as in the case of Chudala.
Sikhidhvaja was a pious king. His spouse was Chudala. They
received instructions from a sage. The king, being busy with
the administration of his kingdom, could not put the instructions
into practice, whereas Chudala put them into practice and gained
Self-Realisation. Consequently she appeared more charming than
before. The king was struck by her growing charm and asked her
about it. She said that all charm was due to the Self and he was
only noting the charm of Self-Realisation in her. He said that she
was silly. There were great tapasvis who could not realise the Self
even after long periods of tapas and what about a silly woman who
was all along in the family and in the worldly life?
However, Chudala was not offended because she was firm in the
Self and only wished that her husband should realise the Self and
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